The subject matter described and/or illustrated herein relates generally to receptacle connectors, and more particularly, to receptacle connectors that are mounted on printed circuits.
Electrical connectors that communicate multimedia signals can include connectors such as High-Definition Multimedia Interface (“HDMI”) connectors. HDMI connectors communicate data, especially multimedia data such as audiovisual signals, for example. Some HDMI connectors include receptacles that receive the plug of another HDMI connector therein. HDMI plug connectors sometimes terminate HDMI cables, but may alternatively be incorporated into a docking station or other electronic device. HDMI receptacle connectors are often mounted along an interface of an electronic device. The HDMI receptacle connectors may be included in a variety of electronic devices such as computers, digital video recorders, set top boxes, and televisions, for example.
Existing HDMI receptacle connectors are mounted on printed circuits (sometimes referred to as “circuit boards”) having one or more sides that include circuit elements thereon, such as electrical contacts, electrical traces, electrical vias, and/or the like. The receptacle connectors include shells that define the receptacle of the connector into which the plug of the HDMI connector is inserted. The receptacle connectors are mounted on the printed circuit such that the length of the shell, and thus the length of the receptacle, extends over and along a side of the printed circuit having circuit elements thereon. But, mounting the shells over and along a side of the printed circuit is an inefficient use of the limited space of the interface of the electronic device. For example, the shells of the receptacle connectors occupy space over the side of the printed circuit, which increases an overall size of the receptacle connector and the printed circuit. The increased size of the receptacle connector and the printed circuit is an inefficient use of the limited space of the interface of the electronic device that may limit the overall number of connectors that can be located along the interface, for example. Moreover, some of the connectors located along the interface may need to be staggered relative to each other to accommodate the desired number of connectors, which may be aesthetically displeasing.